Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Just What Are The "Jewish Funds For Justice", Anyway ?

Well, the Jewish Funds for Justice are sort of like Jews for Jesus. That is, if you take away Jesus and replace Him with Hungarian Nazi collaborator and socialist sugar daddy George Soros. (Which is odd, since Herr Soros despises his own Jewish roots and is an avowed atheist. Oh yeah, Georgie doesn't like Israel, either.) These folks are, as Mark Levin would say, detestable blobs of fecal matter. Not only are they responsible for slandering Glenn Beck and accusing him of antisemitism, but they pervert Judaism to make a political point. In other words, they're the Kosher version of Sojourners, the "Christian" front group lead by admitted communist Jim Wallis. (And guess who Jim Wallis is a spiritual advisor to. I'll give you a hint: his middle name is Hussein and he answers to "Mister President.")

Let's take a look at some of their lies from their website, shall we ?

In October, we produced “Al Tirah! Fear Not!,” the above video featuring Rabbi Sharon Brous. Decrying the politics of fear that characterized much of the public debate the previous year, it encouraged viewers not to cede their voices to an irresponsible minority.

Less than three months later, six people are dead and 18 wounded during an attempt to assassinate Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Tuscon, AZ.

The third-term Representative of a swing district had shown political courage. She voted for the heath care bill. She was an outspoken critic of her states’ anti-immigrant fervor, while supporting comprehensive reform in Washington.

Her courage made her a target.

The night after she voted in favor of the health care bill, the glass door to her office was smashed. For months, hundreds of people she characterized as members of “the Tea Party movement” protested outside of her office. Slurs were common. So were harassing letters and phone calls.

Because she was considered an incumbent vulnerable to defeat, her opponents did their best to foment and channel voter anger. Sometimes this meant using language and images from America’s gun culture. Giffords was a “target” in “the crosshairs” who needed to be “taken out.” "Get on Target for Victory in November" read an invite to an event for her Republican opponent. "Help remove Gabrielle Giffords from office. Shoot a fully automatic M16 with Jesse Kelly."

The New York Times accurately assigned blame in its first editorial about the shooting. “It is facile and mistaken to attribute this particular madman’s act directly to Republicans or Tea Party members,” they wrote. “But it is legitimate to hold Republicans and particularly their most virulent supporters in the media responsible for the gale of anger that has produced the vast majority of these threats, setting the nation on edge. Many on the right have exploited the arguments of division, reaping political power by demonizing immigrants, or welfare recipients, or bureaucrats.”

Giffords herself said much the same thing when she was interviewed by MSNBC after her office door was smashed. “Community leaders, not just political leaders, need to stand back when things get too fired up and say whoa, let’s take a step back here.”

So, how have we done? Did we show leadership by calling on people to step back, as Giffords asked? Have we held the media responsible for setting the nation on edge, as the Times demands?

In March of 2009, at the urging of the JFSJ community, we launched a campaign called Solutions Not Scapegoats. Its purpose has been to speak out against exactly this kind of extremist rhetoric, while presenting real solutions to the very real problems facing millions of Americans. Our ongoing engagement with Glenn Beck has been one manifestation of this effort. Al Tirah was another.

At the time, several Jewish leaders told us privately that it was better to avoid this issue. We were giving Beck free publicity, and the Tea Party movement would not amount to much. During the past ten months, our efforts to hold elected officials and media personalities responsible for their rhetoric have been supported by a wide range of leaders, including many Jews. But as a community, our leaders have been too timid. As a community, we have shown too great a willingness to look the other way at dangerous rhetoric. As a community, we have not heeded Giffords’ call to lead or followed her example of personal bravery.

It is too late for the victims of the shooting in Tuscon. But it is not too late for the next potential victims.

Glenn Beck’s radio show was dropped by WOR radio last week. Until he finds a new station, he is off the air in New York City. Beck has been one of the most irresponsible media personalities, using his platform to tell millions of people who and what they should fear. Patriots like Rep. Giffords, women and men who believe the government has a role in advancing the common good, are vilified daily.

We are calling on all New York radio stations not to pick up Beck’s syndicated radio show. His hate-filled rhetoric is always unwelcome, but it is particularly unwelcome today. Leaders in the Jewish community and in all communities have an opportunity to make their voices heard on this issue. We hope they will.

Three months ago, Rabbi Brous implored us to act. “Al Tirah! Fear not America. Let us drive out the culture of fear and narrowness and replace it with it with a culture of openhearted empathy.”

Let us pray for Giffords and the other victims. And then let us get to work!

Oh...but the imaginary link between the Tuscon Shooting and "overheated rightwing rhetoric" is so two weeks ago. (And not to mention false on many levels since Gabrielle Giffords is a staunch defender of the Second Amendment and was one of the few members of the Democrat party who had the Spauldings to defend SB 1070, despite the fact that it was weaker than the federal law that was already on the books.) I guess that whole "Thou shalt not bear false witness" thing is passe in the "new" Judaism. There's more. Much more.

The Community Organizing Residency (COR) recruits and places individuals from different faith backgrounds in leading organizing groups in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, and the San Francisco Bay Area. Residents gain on-the-ground experience while organizing full-time and being mentored by seasoned organizers.

By drawing Residents from different faiths, including Jewish, Christian, and Muslim communities across the United States, COR aims to build a leadership pipeline for the next generation of community organizers who root their social change work and organizing careers in faith.

Community organizing has the power to transform individuals, organizations, and our nation. Working across lines of race and faith, organizers build power and relationships to make lasting change on critical community issues, like expanding affordable housing, improving public education, and increasing access to healthcare. COR strengthens the connections between religion and social justice while facilitating interfaith relationships among community organizers.

COR is an initiative of the Jewish Funds for Justice, with program support from the American Muslim Civic Leadership Institute, the Poverty Initiative at Union Theological Seminary, and the Jewish Organizing Initiative

Inspired by their beliefs and curious about others’, the first cohort of Residents are launching their organizing careers, gaining leadership skills, organizing for social change, and deepening their understanding of their own and other faith traditions. They are learning about and reflecting on social change approaches through the lenses of Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. Each resident's host organization couples training with mentorship, and COR’s comprehensive approach includes an integrated curriculum of retreats, one-to-one mentoring, and regular reflection sessions.

Community organizing ? Hmmmm.....Can we say Saul Alinsky ? Can we say Rules for Radicals ? I don't know about you, but I'm willing to bet America has had enough "community organizing" for quite a while.

Our Selah leadership program provides high-quality training for Jews working as advocates, organizers, and educators. Selah’s leadership program trains social change professionals to be more efficient, effective workers, thereby creating more efficient, effective organizations. These organizations, from large unions like SEIU to small non-profits like Progressive Jewish Alliance, are on the front lines of efforts to help the United States live up to its reputation as the land of opportunity.

Our seminary leadership program teaches future rabbis and cantors how to build dynamic and engaged congregations through relationship-building and interfaith organizing. JFSJ teaches students in seminaries from every denomination. We inspire rabbis and cantors to bring social justice into the heart of their rabbinates. Around the nation, our graduates are transforming congregational life and strengthening local neighborhoods. We are training the next generation of synagogue leadership.

There were lots of things I didn't see on www.jewishjustice.org. The words God, Torah, and Talmud were curiously absent as was a Star of David. Call me crazy and off my meds, but isn't Judaism about God, Torah, and Talmud ? I'm certain I've read that somewhere, but certainly not at www.jewishjustice.org. Their reading list is one book long. Let's take a gander, shall we ?

Confront the most pressing issues of twenty-first-century America in this fascinating book, which brings together classical Jewish sources, contemporary policy debate and real-life stories.

Rabbi Jill Jacobs, a leading young voice in the social justice arena and rabbi-in-residence at Jewish Funds for Justice, makes a powerful argument for participation in the American public square from a deeply Jewish perspective, while deepening our understanding of the relationship between Judaism and such current social issues as:

•Poverty and the Poor

•Collection and Allocation of Tzedakah

•Workers, Employers and UnionsHousing the Homeless

•The Provision of Health CareEnvironmental Sustainability

•Crime, Punishment and Rehabilitation

By creating a dialogue between traditional texts and current realities, Jacobs presents a template for engagement in public life from a Jewish perspective and challenges us to renew our obligations to each other.